Family-owned cigar business expands from League City to Texas City

By Lindsay Peyton

Published 3:10 pm, Tuesday, July 9, 2013

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Manuel Lopez Sr. opened El Cubano cigars in League City in August 2006. Business is booming with a second location recently opened in Texas City. Manuel Lopez Sr. opened El Cubano cigars in League City in August 2006. Business is booming with a second location recently opened in Texas City. less

Manuel Lopez Sr. opened El Cubano cigars in League City in August 2006. Business is booming with a second location recently opened in Texas City. Manuel Lopez Sr. opened El Cubano cigars in League City in ... more

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Manny Lopez put the final touches on a second location of El Cubano in Texas City. The doors opened in March.Manny Lopez put the final touches on a second location of El Cubano in Texas City. The doors opened in March. less

Manny Lopez put the final touches on a second location of El Cubano in Texas City. The doors opened in March.Manny Lopez put the final touches on a second location of El Cubano in Texas City. The doors opened ... more

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In 1904, the Lopez family moved from Spain to begin growing tobacco in Tumbadero, Cuba, just west of Havana. There were eight brothers working together - and they harvested 400 tons of tobacco a year.

Manuel Lopez Sr. was born in 1936 in Havana. He remembers learning about tobacco at a young age - from working in the fields to how to cure and select raw leaves.

"When I came home from school, my job was to get on a horse and go to the field," he recalled.

When Lopez was 14 years old, he started learning how to roll cigars by hand. "I've been rolling for 60 years now," he said.

In 1959, when Lopez was 23 years old, Castro's regime took over the islands. One year later, army trucks drove up and seized the family's land.

The government offered the Lopez family a deal. They could continue to work the field for four Cuban pesos a day - which was about one third of what the family had been paying its field hands.

Lopez decided to take a different route. He stocked a sailboat with supplies and stole away into the night. He took a two-day trip to America, arriving in Miami on Sept. 12, 1960, a date he has never forgotten.

Starting a cigar business

Manny Lopez grew up hearing his father's stories about the tobacco fields in Cuba, even though his father had taken a job as an auto mechanic in the states and moved his family to Houston.

Lopez Sr. eventually taught his son how to roll cigars.

"He kept the memory alive," Manny said.

Lopez Sr. retired in 2000, and five years later, grew restless. "I decided I didn't like being retired," he said.

In 2006, Lopez opened El Cubano. At the time, Manny was working in real estate.

Lopez said the cigars at El Cubano are unique. "We roll them the way they used to in Cuba," he said.

Also, they use their own blends. "Most people use tobacco from one country," Lopez said. "We bring tobacco from all different countries. We have five different tobaccos in one cigar."

El Cubano now ships its cigars all over the United States.

A new factory

The new location is totally different from the original El Cubano.

"This is the hole in the wall," Lopez said, describing the shop in League City. "The new shop is really nice."

In Texas City, there are leather arm-chairs, big screen televisions and a cigar-rolling station in back.

"This will be a mini-factory, a version of what you'd see in Cuba," Manny said.

The father-son duo decided to expand the business just over a year ago. "We found out they were doing an urban revitalization project in Texas City," Manny said. "We thought it would be a good fit."

The new, 3,000-square-foot El Cubano is one of the first specialty shops to open in the renovated downtown.

"We'll be able to up our production and our supply of cigars," said Manny, adding that they would be rolling cigars in Texas City.

He explained that El Cubano cigars are the result of several years spent refining recipes. He and his father have visited tobacco fields in different countries searching for the best plants.

"We spent three years of research and traveling to make relationships and find good products," Manny said.

He said that they have built a loyal following through the years. "We have a good clientele, and it grows every day," he said.

Customers can come to either shop any day of the week and watch cigars being rolled in front of them. El Cubano rollers also travel for special events - and are frequently hired for weddings, birthday parties and corporate gatherings.

Manny said he hopes that the new location brings more visitors and creates more cigar fans.

"We want it to be a destination for people on their way to Galveston," he said.

Smoking lounge

Customers come to El Cubano in League City on Fridays for a happy hour. "We get a good group of people," Lopez said.

Smoking cigars is becoming more popular, he added. "Younger people are getting into it," he said. "It used to be an old man's habit."

A number of his customers are women, Lopez said. "That one caught me by surprise," he said. "We have dozens of women smoking cigars. It's an 'in' thing."

He explained that El Cubano cigars are all natural. "We don't put in any chemicals," he said. "It's just pure tobacco."

Manny said people enjoy the social aspect of smoking cigars. "It brings out a lot of camaraderie," he said. "It forces you to relax and just talk."

A cigar cannot be rushed, he added.

"To enjoy a cigar, you have to sit down and take an hour to relax," he said. "It forces you to take a break from the hectic pace of life."

Manuel Lopez Sr. also believes that the best thing about cigars is the way they force smokers to slow down.

"You get your favorite drink and a cigar, and it clears your mind," he said. "It's the most relaxing thing."

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